How often do you post on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter? Did you know your social media activity is constantly viewed by someone? That someone could be your current customers, potential customers, and even the government (the government as in the CIA, or the Central Intelligence Agency).

Within Virginia, the CIA has a center called the Open Source Center in which operatives or “vengeful librarians” monitor social media conversations around the world. Their mission is to uncover information that could facilitate international operations. Interestingly enough, the operatives (and there are hundreds of them) can go through over 5 million tweets per day (Wolford). Each day, after the social media data has been mined globally, the team gives the analysis to President Obama.

As a result, whether you realize it or not, your tweets and Facebook posts and so on are always being read by someone, even though you can’t always be sure who that someone is!

How do you feel about the CIA monitoring your social media activity? Share your feedback in a comment!

About Alan Moore: Alan is an Internet Marketing Consultant with ReachLocal Baltimore. His mission is to help you increase your revenues and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He manages over $1.4 million in yearly marketing budgets and has worked with local businesses, agencies and the US government. Give him a call at (877)655-3438 to schedule a free consultation.